Outdoor switch house



'OUTDOOR SWITCH HOUSE July 28., 1931. M B. woon OUTDOOR SWITCH HOUSE Filed Aug: 1, 1927 2 sheets-Sheet 2 hav Patented July 28, 1931 um u unisa MORRIS B. WOOD, OF SOMERVTLE,

TRICAL IIIANUFCTUR-ir-G- C -'f CORPORATION OF LIASSACH'USETTS PATE? OFFICE SQACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO CONDIT ELEC- JN. SOUTH BOSTON, PIASSACHUSETTS, A

OUTDOOR @WHICH EOUSE Application filed August l, 1327.

- unit which is compact enough to be portable requires considerable ingenuity in the arrangement of the apparatus due to the presence of the high voltage apparatus in proximity to the control panel.

if; The present invention is concerned more particularly with a novel vconstruction and arrangement of portable outdoorswitch houses whereby certain disadvantages in present switch houses are obviated and a safer and f5 more accessible arrangement of the apparatus is provided.

Prior to my invention a switch panel was provided within the house upon which was located the usual control apparatus into cluding a switch operating handle and meters on t-he front of the panel and the usual relays and low tension wiring on the back of the panel. A switch of the bracket type was mounted on the back of the panel in position to be operated by the handle on the front of the panel. Doors were provided at the front and back of the house so that access could be gained to either side of the panel. With this arrangement both high tension and low tension wiring were contained in the same compartment and in close proximity. The presence of the switch and its high tension leads prevented access to he low tension wiring on the back of the board. Whenever a relay contact was inspected er a. sgml lamp rp seed the high Serial No. 203,744.

tension disconnects on both sides of the switch had to be opened to make the high tension wiring in the switch house dead. At the same time the back of the panel was not very accessible and frequently it was necessary to remove the switch from its position on the panel to make minor repairs.

lt is an object of the present invent-ion to provide an improved arrangement for a switch house and the apparatus contained therein, and specil'ically to provide a switch house in which the high and low tension apparatus and wiring are segregated.

It is a further object to provide a switch house in which both sides of the low tension panel and both sides of the high tension apparatus are freely accessible.

A further object is the provision of a high tension switch house having its low tension apparatus freely accessible without giving access to the high tension compartment thereof.

A still further object is generally to improve the construction and arrangement of outdoor switch houses.

Fig. l is a perspective view of the back of a switch house embodying the invention, with the doors open.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of theswitch house of Fig. l with the doors open.'

Fig. 3 is a plan view taken on line 3 3 of Fig'. 2, the doors being shown partly closed for economy of space.

As herein shown, the switch house embodying the invention includes an all steel enclosing house built up of flat steel plates having their edges turned to form suitable structural shapes which when' welded together provide a rigid, self-supporting structure without the necessity for an interior framework of structural steel as has hitherto been required. The construction of the housing is described in detail in my copending application Serial No. 209,743 tiled August t@ 3G27, and 'consequently will be. described herein only in as far as is necessary to disclose the present invention.

Said housing includes a bottom section 10 having integral therewith an upstanding peripheral flange 12, and a top section 14 having a depending peripheral flange 16 spaced apart by opposed side walls 18 which are also provided with inwardly directed integral flanges 2O on their vertical edges. The flanges of said top, bottoinand side walls are secured together at their proximate surfaces by welding so as to be connected rigidly together and to form waterproof joints. Narrow plates 22 and 24 are also welded to the flanges of said side walls across the upper portion of the front and back of the housing and extend under and are welded to the depending flanges of said top section 14. Said plates 22 and 24 are provided with outwardly and downwardly extended flange sections 26 which overhang the front and back openings ofthe housing. A pair of doors 28 and 30 atthe front ofthe housing provide a removable closure for the front opening and a similar pair of doors 32 and 34 provide the closure forthe rear opening.

The interior of the switch house is divided into two compartments A and B. Vertical angle sections 36 and 38 extend between the top and bottom sections of the house at the front and back respectively at the line of division between said compartments and are secured to the flanges 12 and 16 of the bottom and top sections by welding. According to the invention all the high tension wiring and apparatus isadapted to occupy said compartment A while the low tension control apparatus including the switch operating handle is adapted to be located in compartment B.

A three-phase oil circuit breaker 40 having a supporting bracket 42 is mounted in compartment A and lengthwise of the house by means of vertically spaced horizontal angle sections 44 which extend between said vertical angles 36' and 38 and are welded thereto. The bracket 42 of said breaker is adapted to be secured to said horizontal angles 44 by bolts. whereby the breaker can be easily removed from the switch-house. As shown in F ig. 3 the breaker 40 is mounted at the back ofthe compartment A. rlwo relatively small angle sections 46 extend from the upper angle 44v across to the side wall 18 andy are4 welded permanently in position. Said angles 4G are arranged to support the three current transformers 48 located above the breaker 40 and in the front of the compartment A. Potential transformers 50 are disposed in the front of compartment A on the bottom 10 of the switch house. By-this arrangement of the switch and transformers, the oil switch is supported in an elevated position above the floor and the space therebeneath is unoccupied'so that the oil receptaclescan be lowered and the contact members exposed without removing the switch from the house.

insulating bushings 52 extend through the top 12 of the house and provide external terminal connectors 54 for the line conductorsI and internal terminal connectors 56 for the switch leads. High tension lire proof cable leads 51 connect the bushing terminals with the switch and the current transformers 48. Taps (not shown) from the terminals of said current transformers are carried down to the terminals of the potential transformer 50.

A vertical control panel 5S is mounted approximately in the centre of the low voltage compartment ll by means of a pair of vertical angle sections 55 and 5T. Said angle is welded to the side wall 18 and said angle 57 is welded to the two horizontal angles 44 which support the breaker 40. Said panel is arranged to extend approximately from the betteln edge of plate 22 to a point a little below the middle of the front opening in the switc"A house. although the size of the panel is somewhat dependent upon the particu` r requirements of the customer.

rhe switch operating mechanism includes a face plate 5) mounted on the front of said panel which provided with a coil boi; 5S and an operating handle 58. A reciprocable rod 60 pivoted to said handle is connected to one arm of a horizontal bell crank lever pivoted to a bracket G3 carried by the rear face of the panel. The other arm of said bell crank is pivoted to a switch actuating rod G4. Said rod 34 is connected in the customary way with themovable switch member of the breaker 40. Various miscellaneous indicating apparatus such as volt meters, ammet emand meters, and signal lights may be arrang d on the panel as conditions of service require. Other control appar tus may be provided in the house such as an automatically operated reclosing mechanism GG which is connected with the switch operating mechanism by a vertically reciprocable rod G7.

Diagonal brace members GS are provided between the uprights 3G, and the lower corner of the switch house to prevent buckling of the uprights due to stresses up therein by the eccentric load of the ln'eaker thereon and' by operation of the breaker 40. Said brace members are secured removably to the uprights at one end by bolts (39 and at the other end by a bolt to a web plate 72 which is welded to the flanges 12 and 2 0 of the bottom and side walls respectively.

rllhe breaker 40 may also be supported at the end opposite the bracket 42 by means of an angle 73 which may be welded to the side wall 18 at about the middle thereof. Said angle also serves to supper.: said wall against buckling.

rlhe arrangement of the apparatus scribed above is a` decided in'iproveme:

l,the operating company,

that employed in former houses of this type where the switch was mounted eirectiy on the back of the panel 58 and obscured the wiring and relays which were mounted thereon as well as bringing the high tension leads into close proximity with the low tension control apparatus. By the present arrangement of apparatus both the front and rear of the panel is freely accessible at all times and can be worked on without danger from the high voltage equipment, .vhich is entirely removed from the low tension compartment.

Barriers may be provided between the upright angles 3G and 38 to completely isolate the low tension compartment B from the high tension compartment A, although for reasons of clearness they are not shown in the drawings. The arrangement shown has the further advantage that separate locks can be provided on the doors to the compartments A and. B so that an operator while having access to the switch operating equipment cannot inadvertently leave the high tension compartment unlocked by failing to loclr the switch house doors. Furthermore, in industrial installations whore the switch houses are in the hands of customers who own the low tension equipment while the high tension equipment is the property of it is very desirable to have the high tension equipment inaccessible to the operator, who frequently is not particularly well informed as to the dangers connected therewith. Y

The switch house is adapted to be supported upon channel members 7st at the front and back thereof which are welded to the bottom section l0 and extend sufliciently therebeyond to permit the channels to be bolted to a suitable foundation,

The construction may be otherwise modified without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

l. An outdoor electric switch house having means providing therein a high tension compartment and isolated therefrom a low tension compartment, high voltage equipment contained in said first compartment including an electric switch, and a control panel contained in said second compartment having switch operating mechanism extended into said high tension compartment to operate said electric switch, each of said high and low tension compartments having separate openings both at the front and back of the house on opposite sides of and facing said switch and panel respectively, and doors for said openings.

2. An outdoor electric switch house having means including a top wall and spaced side walls providing an enclosure open at the front and back between said side walls, a high tension switch contained in said switch house adjacent one side wall, a low tension control panel for said switch contained in said si itch house adjacent the other side wall, switch operating mechanism carried by said panel, actuating means connecting said switch operating mechanism with said switch, and doors forming removable closures for the front and back openings of said switch house and opening separately on to said switch, and also onto said panel, on opposite sides of both.

3. An outdoor electric switch house including top, bottom and side walls forming a relatively long and narrow housing having its more extensive sides open and constituting the front and back of the house, a high tension switch disposed within and at one side of said housing having its longitudinal aXis parallel with the long sides of said housing, a control panel parallel with and at one side of the axis of the switch and in the opposite side of the housing, an operating face plate mechanism carried by said panel, operating mechanism connecting` the face plate mechae nism with the switch, and separate closures for each of the open sides of the house.

at. An outdoor electric switch house which is relatively long and narrow having a high tension switch disposed ther-ein with its longitudinal axis lengthwise of the house and in one side of the house, a control pan-el parallel with and at one side of the switch in the other side of the house, a supporting` frame located between said switch and panel and constituting at least in part a support for both, a switch operating rod carried by and movable in a direction perpendicular to said panel, a connecting rod disposed behind and in parallel relation with said panel and connected with said switch, a bell-crank lever carried by said panel and having pivotal connections with both said operating and said connecting rods and means giving separate access to said switch and panel on both sides of either.

5. An outdoor electric switch house having means providing front and back openings, a control panel disposed in said house in one side thereof and facing both openings, a switch-operating face plate carried by one side of said panel facing said front opening, low tension wiring carried by the other side of said panel facing said bach opening, and high tension apparatus including a high tension oil switch disposed in said house in the other side thereof between said front and back openings and beside said panel and in position to permit access to said face plate and also to said low tension wiring through said front and back openings respectively free from contact with said high tension apparatus.

6. An outdoor electric switch house having met-al side and end walls, said side walls comprising doors forming removable closures for the front and back of the house, a pair of vertical bars disposed in the middle of the house,

at the front and back thereof respectively, a vertical panel bar carried by and located intermediate said vertical bars, a second vertical panel bar disposed in line with said rst panel bar and secured to one of said end walls, control panel disposed between and secured to said panel bars, and an oil switch connected at one end with and carried by said vertical barson the side of said house opposite said paneland low tension apparatus carried by the front and back of said panel facing' said frontfand back doors.

7'. An outdoor electric switch house having metal end walls, a pair of vertical bars disposed in the middle of the house, at the front and back thereofrespectively, a vertical panel barcarried by and located intermediate said vertical bars, a second vertical panel bar disposed inline with said firstA panel bar and secured to one yof said end walls, a control panel disposed between and secured to said panel bars having low tension apparatus carried by the front and back thereof, an oil switch connected at one end with and carried by said vertical bars on the side of said house opposite said panel havingfhigh tension apparatus associated therewith, a supporting bar fixed to said oth-er end wall and providing support for the free end of said switch, said house having front and back closures comprising doors opening onto both the front and back of said panel, whereby to give access to said panel free from said high tension apparatus.

8. An outdoor electric switch house having atop, a bottom, and end walls, and open at the front and rear, a pair of vertical bars disposed in the middle of the front and rear openings, doors hinged to said end walls overlying` said frontand rear openings and said bars, an electric switch carried by said bars, at one side thereof having high tension apparatus associated therewith, a control panel having low tension apparatus supported on the front and rear thereof carried at least in *i part by said bars on the other side thereof whereby to permit access to the front and rear of said panel free from said high tension apparatus.

9. An outdoor electric switch house having metaltop, bottom and end walls formed with reflexed side edges having reinforcing flanges providing reinforcement for said house and connections between the walls, said house being open at the front and rear, a pair of vertical hars fixed to said house and disposed in the middle thereof at said front and rear openings, diagonal braces extended from intermediate points of said bars to said bottom Wall and having removable connections with said bars and bottom wall, a pair of horizontally-disposed, switch-supporting bars connecting said; vertical bars intermediate the ends thereof, a horizontal switch-supporting bar ixedlto one ofsald end walls and cooperating with;` the aforesaid switch-supporting bars to provide support for the switch, a vertical, panel-supporting bar carried by said pair of switch-supporting bars and disposed between said vertical bars, a second panelsupporting bar affixed to the other end wall MORRIS B. WOOD. 

